By: Pastor Stephen Krenz, Sole Pastor at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church Columbia, IL & 1st Vice President of the Southern IL District of the LCMS

A Father’s Day reflection from Pastor Krenz:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are
comforted by God. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Hear, my son, your father’s instruction, and forsake not your mother’s teaching, for they are a graceful garland for your head and pendants for your neck. Proverbs 1:8-9

When I started dating my wife Lisa thirty-one years ago, I quickly realized that her desire to be a mother was far greater than my desire to be a father. I wasn’t opposed to having children, but my primary desire was to find a spouse. While Lisa’s desire to find a spouse and have children were of similar importance. I had a great father and have been blessed to be a father to two now grown children, but I think the significance of being an involved father is not emphasized in our culture to the same extent as being an involved mother. In a nation where one out of four children grow up in a home without a father, it is time that we emphasize that along with having a career and being a good husband, the role of being an involved father is of great importance.

While the mission of Eve’s Restoration Home is to empower mothers to rebuild and reunite their families, that does not exclude fathers, for their role is integral to families. I am blessed to haven been married to a wonderful woman for almost 30 years and have learned that I am equally blessed to be a father to Joel and Anna. As believers in the Lord Jesus, we are privileged that the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, has comforted us in all our afflictions, so that we can comfort others with the same comfort we have received from our heavenly Father.

To my fellow Christian fathers, and to those who may one day be fathers, may our lives reflect well this love the heavenly Father has graciously brought our way.